The Mornin' Mail is published every weekday except major holidays
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 Volume XVIII, Number 187

did ya know?

Did Ya Know?..There will be a Winter Blues and Cruise on the Carthage Square on Saturday, March 20 from 3 – 7 p.m. Hosted by Vintage Rods car club.

."Did Ya Know?.. . Spare Cat Rescue will sponsor "It Takes Two" March low-cost spay & neuter clinic for cats. When you have your female spayed for $20, it will only take $2 to neuter your male cat. 417-358-6808

today's laugh

Two guys are out hunting deer. The first guy says, "Did you see that?"

"No," the second guy says.

"Well, a bald eagle just flew overhead," the first guy says.

"Oh," says the second guy.

A couple of minutes later, The first guy says, "Did you see that?"

"See what?" the second guy asks.

"Are you blind? There was a big, black bear walking on that hill, over

there."

"Oh."

A few minutes later the first guy says: "Did you see that?"

By now, the second guy is getting aggravated, so he says, "Yes, I did!"

And the first guy says: "Then why did you step in it?"

 

I have never been jealous. Not even when my dad finished fifth grade a year before I did.- Jeff Foxworthy


1910


INTERESTING MELANGE.
A Chronological Record of Events as they have Transpired in the City and County since our last Issue.

Charles Weston, of Barton county, who was here with his team and wagon yesterday, had one of his horses attached by W. H. Hatch on a judgement for $10 which he had repeatedly refused to pay. His mother came to his rescue with a secure note.

Annie King, who was tried and convicted of petit larceny before Justice Craycroft at Joplin in 1892 and made her escape from the county jail after two days imprisonment, was arrested in Joplin yesterday and is now going to serve out the balance of her 40 day sentence.

While Isaiah Eiting and family were in from their country home Sunday attending memorial services, their team, which was hitched in Porter’s yard, broke loose and started for home at a 2:40 gait. They were caught by some boys before any damage was done, except a broken pole of the spring wagon.

  Today's Feature

Free Income Tax Assistance.

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA ) tax site at the Family Literacy Center at 706 Orchard in Carthage will be closed Good Friday, April 2 and Saturday, April 3.

The site will be open this Friday, March 19 and next Friday, March 26 4:00 to 7:00 p.m and Saturdays, March 20 and March 27 10:00 am to 12:00 noon. No appointment is necessary.

The site will be open Saturday, April 10 for all those procrastinators who wait until the last minute to file. Taxpayers are reminded that even though they file early and owe, the payment is not due until April 15, so early filing is encouraged.

Taxpayers who earned less than $49,000 in 2009 may visit a VITA site for free federal income tax return preparation and electronic filing. With e-file, taxpayers may be able to get their refund in as little as 10 days.

Many of these taxpayers qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit. In some cases, that credit may be nearly $5,700 for eligible taxpayers.



Just Jake Talkin'
Mornin',

There is one thing that most folks have in common, the dislike of standin’ in lines. They will stand around the coffee pot, stand on a bus, stand in front of windows in the mall, but waitin’ in line isn’t to be stood for.

‘Course since standin’ in line is such a nuisance, the one thing that might top the aggravation is havin’ someone cut in front of you while your waitin’. I witnessed a real sneaky attempt at line cuttin’ over the weekend while waitin’ for a table at a restaurant.

A mom and her kid come in, the kid heads for the restroom, the mom waits in line. After a while I look up and the kid is standin’ next to a table bein’ cleared, wavin’ to his mom. She makes a move but is cut off by a savvy line stander. "Oh did you want that table?" she asked innocently.And they ask where kids get the ideas. I thanked this one for savin’ our table for us.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.


Sponsored by Carthage Printing Weekly Columns

To Your Good Health

By Paul G. Donohue, M.D.

Spinal Stenosis a Major Cause of Back Pain

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Sixty-two must be the age when everything falls apart. I’m there. My latest body part to give way is my back. I have back pain a considerable amount of the time. It finally brought me to a doctor, who tells me I have spinal stenosis. I have been told to take Aleve for my pain, and I’m scheduled for physical therapy. I don’t have great hopes of a cure. What exactly is this? What else can be done for it? -- T.R.

ANSWER: Spinal stenosis accounts for about one-third of all cases of low-back pain. It’s an elusive concept that calls for an anatomy lesson. The backbones (vertebrae, spinal column) have a tunnel running through them -- the spinal canal. In that canal or tunnel is the spinal cord and spinal nerves. Spinal stenosis signifies that the spinal canal has narrowed and is pressing on the spinal cord or spinal nerves. That, in turn, produces back pain that can spread to the buttocks, the back of the thighs or the lower leg. The pain worsens on standing or waking, and goes away when the person sits.

Aging is the most important factor in developing spinal stenosis. Back ligaments, which hold the backbones in place, thicken and calcify. Arthritic changes in the backbones sprout bone spurs that impinge on the canal. Back discs -- the spongy shock absorbers between adjacent backbones -- degenerate and crumble, and that narrows the canal and exerts pressure on the spine and spinal nerves.

Nonsurgical treatment employs physical therapy to strengthen and stretch back muscles in an attempt to relieve pressure on the spine and its nerves. Anti-inflammatory medicines like your Aleve control pain. You might need stronger pain medicines. Epidural injections of cortisone ease inflammation and give the spinal canal and spinal nerves more room. "Epidural" means the injection is made into a space in the spinal canal above its covering membrane. Surgery is a solution when these measures fail.

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